Book 4 Chapter 2

Charlotte waddles down the hall of OCW as she reads the chart she's holding in her hand she slams right into Violet Turner,who's not watching where she is going either.

"Watch it!" The cranky pregnant blonde snaps at the psychiatrist.

"Sorry Charlotte but you weren't looking where you were going." Violet informs her.

"Whatever." Charlotte tries to brush past her.

"To what do I this pleasure of bumping into you while your so happy?" Violet comments sarcastically.

Charlotte glares at her. "Let's see, where do I start? The baby's stompin' on my bladder making me constantly have to pee? I've got sciatica! I can't sleep at night because my belly is in the way no matter what position I try…..?"

"Okay, I get it." Violet stops her. "When are you going to pop that baby out?"

"I'm due tomorrow as long as the kid cooperates." Charlotte answers.

"Exciting." Violet's all smiles. "Did you pick a name yet?"

Charlotte answers "Well I did but Cooper's planning on calling her something else."

"You two can't agree on a name?" Violet asks

"Nope!" Charlotte answers. "Now if ya don't mind I got work to do." She brushes past Violet and Pete passes by.

"Good morning Charlotte." Pete greets.

"Whatever you say Wilder." Charlotte walks by him.

"What's her problem?" Pete asks Violet.

Violet answers" Nine months pregnant and her and Cooper are bickering over the baby's name."

"I can hear you!" Cooper pokes his head out of his office.

"Let the wifey pick the name Coop." Pete advices "I let Violet pick Lucas's name."

"I already let her pick the last three." Cooper tries to convince Pete "This is our last one so I want to pick it."

"What are the names?" Violet asks.

"I like Shelby." Cooper says

"Shelby's cute." Violet agrees.

"What's Charlotte's pick?" Pete wants to know.

Cooper answers. "Eden."

"Eden." Pete adds "I like it. It sounds exotic and provocative."

"Precisely why I don't want to name my baby girl it." Cooper points out.

"Your baby girl's going to grow up into a woman one day Cooper." Pete adds.

"Not with that name." Cooper insists.

"How about Sierra?" Pete suggests. "It' not a southern city but it's a beautiful place and it has a savannah so it goes along with your other daughters name."

"It does start with an S like Savannah." Cooper thinks. "I'll mention it to Charlotte. Thanks Pete."

"Good luck figuring it out." Violet pats Cooper on the back.

Eight hours later:

Charlotte's in the labor room at St. Ambrose. She's been in labor for five hours now and it's time to push the baby out.

"Okay Char I want you to give a great big push and that'll be it."

Charlotte does as told, concentrating too much on pushing to scream.

"Okay that one did it Addison says as she guides the baby girl out of Charlotte's birth canal. Cooper holds Charlotte's hand. "It's a girl Addison announces."

"We already knew that!" Charlotte tells her. "You're the one that did the sonogram. Short memory Montgomery?"

"I remembered it was a girl." Addison tells her while suctioning out the baby's mouth. "It's a habit. I always announce the sex after I delivir each baby."

"Okay let's see her." Cooper lets go of Charlotte's hand and watches Addison hand her to the nurse to be cleaned.

"Why isn't she cryin'?" Charlotte inquires. "I like to hear a nice strong cry once they're born."

"Give her a minute Charlotte." Addison cleans Charlotte up while Cooper examines the baby with the nurse.

"Let's give her some oxygen." Cooper tells the nurse as he tries to stay calm for both his and Charlotte's sake.

"Why? What's wrong?" Charlotte calls out.

"She's a little cyanotic around the lips" Cooper says calmly. 'It's common after birth Char, you know that." Cooper puts a small oxygen mask on the babies face. Soon after the baby starts to cry. "There you go she's crying now Cooper says as he listens to her heart.

"It's a weak cry" Charlotte's concerned.

"Give her some time Charlotte. Cooper just put the oxygen on her." Addison tries to assure her.

"We need to call Dr. Davis" Cooper tells the nurse.

Charlotte and Addison look at him.

"Dr Davis, the pediatric cardiologist?" Addison asks "Why?"

"The baby has significant murmur." Cooper answers. "I want him to check her out now."

"But the sonogram didn't showe any kind of problem." Charlotte's concerned.

"Let's wait and see what he says Char."

"Can I see her? I wanna see her." Charlotte tells Cooper.

"I can't bring her over there. The oxygen cord wont reach. Here" He holds the baby up.

Charlotte gasps. "She's still blue even with the oxygen."

Addison tells her "She'll be alright Charlotte. Dr. Davis will figure it out."

Dr. Davis enters the room. "Congratulations everyone." He tells Charlotte and Cooper. He immediately looks at the baby.

As he examines the baby he asks. "Were there any problems noted on the sonogram."

"No" Charlotte says" but I haven't had a sonogram since I was four months on, since we found out the sex."

"Everything was going fine." Addison reports. "Normal pregnancy, I didn't see the need to order another one."

Dr. Davis gets on the phone. "This is Dr. Davis. I need a stat echocardiogram on a newborn and then I need a bed set up in the Nicu for her." He hangs up. "I'm going to bring her upstairs right now to do an echocardiogram of her heart."

"I'll come." Cooper tells him.

"I want to come too." Charlotte says.

"You can't Charlotte. I'm delivering the placenta now and then I need to suture you up." Addison informs her.

"I'll call you as soon as I know anything." Cooper kisses Charlotte on the head and then follows Dr. Davis, the nurse and the new baby out of the room.

Charlotte takes a deep breath and sighs. The tears start to fall from her eyes.

"Don't worry Charlotte. She'll be fine." Addison tries to distract Charlotte. "What are you going to name her?"

"I don't know." Cooper and I can't agree on a name. Charlotte wipes her tears with her hand. "That seems so dumb now."

"No, a name is very important." Addison tells her. "What's your pick?"

"Eden" Charlotte responds wiping her eyes.

"Oooooh! I like that." She tells Charlotte. "What does Cooper like?"

"He likes Shelby." Charlotte tells her. "And Pete likes Sierra."

"What's Pete got to do with it?" Addison asks as she stitches her up

"He threw in his two cents, but we're considering it." Charlotte tells her.

"Tough decision. I know. You'll have to have more girls this way you can use all names." Addison jokes.

Charlotte huffs. "No chance. I'm done. Four's plenty."

"Can't say I blame you." Addison agrees.

"Unless?" Charlotte says quietly and sniffles.

"Unless what?" Addison inquires.

Charlotte answers her. "Unless this one doesn't make it."

Addison's surprised at Charlotte. "She'll make it Charlotte. You've got the best doctors all around you." Addison tells her but secretly worries for the baby herself.

About a hour later

Cooper comes into Charlotte's hospital room with Dr. Davis.

Charlotte looks up and asks right away "Where's the baby?"

Dr. Davis answers. "We admitted her to the neonatal intensive care unit?"

"Why" What'd you find?" Charlotte looks nervously at Cooper.

Cooper talks calm and slow. "Charlotte the baby has a ventricular septal defect..."

Charlotte responds. "Okay, so she has a VSD, that's the most common cardiac defect newborns can have." She shrugs her shoulders. "Hell, sometimes they just fix themselves."

"Right." Dr. Davis answers her. "Frequently, the hole in the heart chamber will close on it's own."

"That's not so bad. Why is she in the NICU? As a precaution?"

"No Charlotte" Cooper takes her hand.

Dr. Davis answers "The hole in her heart is very large. Normally, I would wait and treat with medication until the infant is older but I'm afraid your daughter will need surgery rather soon."

"When?" Charlotte answers.

"As soon as possible." Dr. Davis answers. "Her lips and skin are cyanotic and her breathing is rapid. We've intubated her so she doesn't have to work so hard to breathe."

Charlotte gasps. "What? My baby's intubated?"

Cooper hugs her and she pushes him away. "I want to see her now!" Charlotte demands.

"Calm down Charlotte, She'll be okay. She just needs surgery." Cooper tries to calm his wife.

Dr. Davis adds, "With surgery these babies do fine. She needs it sooner than later though."

"She's so little" Charlotte takes a deep breath. "I want the best. It's her heart we're talkin' about. Can she wait until I do some research and find the best?"

"Yes, she can wait but we have to leave her intubated until the surgery. She'll tire herself out with the rapid breathing." Dr. Davis advises.

"Fine, Cooper go to my office and get me my laptop!" Charlotte barks it out like an order.

"Yes ma'am!" Cooper responds and heads out the door.


Okay! You guys decide. You get to pick the new baby's name!

Do you want it to be EDEN like Charlotte wants?

Cooper's choice-SHELBY?

or should we go with Pete's compromise of SIERRA?

Let me know in the reviews or send me a PM. Majority wins, since I like all the names!

So don't forget to review this chapter!